Born to Love (The Vampire Reborn Series) (Entangled Ignite)

by Caridad Piñeiro

  “We can enter through the station and a nearby access point, then make our way to this area,” Diana said, drawing a circle around one of the tunnels on the blueprints.

  “Why that one?” Jesus asked.

  She motioned to the loop track. “This is an active route for the number 6 subway to get from the downtown platform to the uptown side.” She indicated another tunnel close by. “This one is used as a switching point in case of emergencies. They’ll want to meet in that tunnel since chances are it won’t be active.”

  After the ADIC’s nod, she said, “We can use our surveillance equipment above ground to confirm their location. Then we go in, cutting off their escape from both ends.”

  “How many half-bloods did Weasel say were expected?” David asked, shooting a glance at Maggie and Brendon.

  “Anywhere from three to a dozen. He says the size of the group varies. Many of the halfs want no part of this,” Maggie said. “Especially now.”

  “Whether they do or not, the damage is done. It’ll be tough for the full-blood leaders to trust the halfs again,” Brendon said, sending an apologetic look to Rafe and Maggie. “Present company excluded, of course.”

  Another long silence followed his statement. Diana cautiously asked, “Will there be retribution against the halfs?”

  With a heavy sigh, Brendon gave a nod. “We’ve already closed ranks in my pack because of Jefferson, but we haven’t taken out any halfs, nor do I intend to. Despite our wolfman reputation, we werewolves are not that barbaric. But I can’t say the same for the Reggies. There are too many of them as it is.”

  “What about the shifters living in Central Park? The avian weres?” Maggie asked.

  Brendon lifted a shoulder and wagged his head doubtfully. “They’re so rare, I don’t think they’d hurt their own breeds like that. They’re actually one of the few species who can mate with halfs to produce new shifters with any certainty.”

  Diana didn’t like what he’d said about halfs being targeted for retribution, but knew that for now, the team’s focus had to be on catching Jefferson. Handling the fallout from this coup in the otherworld would have wait until they’d gotten the human world back to rights.

  “No matter what’s happening with the weres, remember that this mission is about apprehending our suspect. Alive.” She glanced at each person sitting at the table to confirm they all understood. Everyone nodded, including Brendon.

  She returned to the map and detailed the areas in which they’d be fighting, pointing out the possible issues they’d have to handle during the raid. “The station and tunnel will be poorly lit. Not a problem for you wolves, but the rest of us might consider using night vision goggles. Plus, we’ll have to deal with the third-rail situation. According to the MTA, there’s still juice on the track at this location.” She circled a spot on the subway map with her finger. “Touching that rail will kill you.” She pursed her lips at Ryder. “Well. Most of us, anyway.”

  “Vampires as well, darlin’. It’s like condensed fire,” Ryder said.

  Moving to a map showing what lay above the tunnels, she motioned to the three different spots in City Hall Park. “The tunnel has grated skylights leading above ground here, here, and here, but one has a hatch over it. We’ll need to make sure he doesn’t use one of the other two skylights to escape. They’re both in between the two points where we’ll be entering.”

  David pointed and said, “We can move a surveillance van here, via Park Row, and position it between the two skylights. That should give us eyes and ears all the way to our two entry points.”

  “Great minds think alike. You volunteering to man the van for us? Be our eyes, to walk us through?” After his remarks about being taken for granted, she didn’t want to assign him the task unless he was willing.

  “Count me in. I’ve never been a tunnel kind of guy. Claustrophobia,” he said with a feigned shudder, but his light tone sounded forced. She suspected he would have preferred to be agile enough to take part in the raid below ground.

  Relieved by his ready acceptance, she flashed him a smile and went on, “Five of us are going in—”

  “Us being me,” Ryder corrected. “You are not going underground.”

  Diana jerked back as if struck. She’d accepted him being in on the planning, but that didn’t mean he could dictate what she could and couldn’t do.

  But before she could say a word, the ADIC chimed in. “I agree with Ryder. Reyes, you can’t be a part of the team going into the tunnels.” He held up his hands. “And before you go ballistic, I’d give the same orders to any agent under my command who happens to be pregnant.”

  Biting back her angry, knee-jerk reaction, Diana regarded him, needing to be sure of what her boss intended. “You want me on the sidelines? Just watching?”

  “We need capable people we can trust in the surveillance van. Plus, we can’t bring in any other agents on account of what we’re dealing with. Harris can’t man the van alone. All told, you are the best choice for the job.”

  Diana rose to her full height—not that it would be the least bit intimidating to a big man like him. “What if I’m not on board with those orders?”

  He straightened, squared his shoulders, and set his hands on his hips. “Not a factor, Reyes. I’m your boss, and what I say goes.”

  “I’m pregnant, sir, not incompetent. There’s no reason—”

  “Did you not hear me, Special Agent Reyes?” he snapped.

  She prepared to argue, but from the corner of her eye she caught a glimpse of her old partner sitting there red-faced, obviously distressed. The sudden realization of her total thoughtlessness slammed into her. She was treating the surveillance van as a demotion. Second string. And that implication hadn’t been lost on David.

  God, what a selfish idiot she was. Never had she intended to hurt him or diminish his contributions. She took a giant mental step back. “You’re right, ADIC Hernandez. Surveillance is essential to the success of this assignment. I’m good with helping Harris man the van.”

  Jesus arched a brow, plainly surprised, but thankfully didn’t question her sudden about-face. “Business as usual in the morning, people, but reconvene here at 4:00 p.m. to be briefed for the raid.”

  After the other attendees had filtered out of the room, Diana hung back. She closed the door and approached Ryder, who still sat at the table.

  He stared back at her.

  Angry.

  She put one hand on the table, the other on the arm of his chair, and leaned in. “Just because we made a pledge of togetherness doesn’t mean you can dictate to me what I do on the job.”

  Neon bled into his gaze and a hint of fang burst from beneath his upper lip. “Did you really think you could be effective in that raid?” he asked, the growl of the demon laced in his tones.

  “I did. I do.”

  He moved then, so quickly she almost couldn’t block the shot he directed at her belly, but she somehow managed to cover the bulge with both hands and spin away, and he just grazed her. Probably because he pulled his punch. But she didn’t even see his next move, swift and powerful. Deadly. He grabbed her by the throat and applied pressure, controlled and tempered, despite the threatening position.

  “You have a weakness to exploit,” he ground out. “Jefferson won’t be as kind as I’m being right now. He won’t hesitate to use that weakness against you.”

  It would take only a little more pressure to choke her. Slightly more to snap her neck.

  She hated that he was right and had gotten the upper hand too easily because of her instinct to protect the baby.

  Wrapping her hand around his wrist, she yanked at it, but he held fast. “Let go,” she said. “Now.”

  He did as she asked, and she backed away from him, fear coiling in her gut, although she knew he would never hurt her. Never. In her head, across the connection they shared, came the whispered words, I’m sorry.

  She knew that. She could feel it. That didn’t make the situation any eas
ier.

  She didn’t like leaving her friends to face such danger on their own. She didn’t like the thought of Ryder risking his life in her stead.

  But as she hesitated, considering where they could go from here, she realized what he had in mind. “I know what you’re planning, but that’s not possible,” she said, and walked back to him.

  When she stood before him, he put his hands to her waist, the gesture both possessive and loving. “You’re a mind-reader now?”

  “I know you too well, my love. You’re calling your vampire friends to help.”

  “You make that sound like a bad thing,” he countered.

  “While I would appreciate the extra muscle and fang, the last thing I want to do is start an otherworld war. Bad enough the werewolves are roaming all over the were-rat area. Vampires? Can’t even imagine the fallout.”

  Ryder plainly understood, but wasn’t happy. “We both need to take adequate steps to stay safe.” He laid his hands on her belly. “This little one needs two parents.”

  Diana nodded and caressed the strong line of his jaw. “We will stay safe. City Hall Loop is easily accessible. We should be able to secure the area, no problem.”

  She moved away and went to the map. She shook her head. “It pisses me off to think we’ve been chasing this guy all over Manhattan when he literally may have been right under our noses.”

  “I’m surprised the traitors chose a meeting place where they might run into humans,” he said.

  Diana agreed. “It’s a surprise, but a welcome one. We should be able to get heat signatures, possibly even a visual, to determine how many are at the meeting. Once we know that, we can assess whether the team goes in, or waits and tries to separate Jefferson from the rest of the group.”

  Her optimism did little to reassure him, judging by the glower on his face. Still, he relented, stroking his hands up and down her sides, the tension in his body visibly easing.

  “Let’s go home,” he said. “It would be nice to have some alone time with you for a change.”

  “Promise me you’ll keep your vampire friends out of this,” she said. She’d be unable to rest without that promise.

  He hesitated, but at length he nodded. “Okay. I promise. I know bringing them in may only cause more problems for you. So for now, it’ll be just me helping out.”

  “Ryder—”

  “Just me, darlin’,” he repeated, and she didn’t doubt his word.

  But that only awoke the fear she’d barely been able to contain as they had outlined their plan of attack during dinner. Now it roared back even stronger, because even if it turned out the odds were in the team’s favor, Jefferson struck her as a psychopath, a man who would stop at nothing to accomplish his goals. One you could never fully anticipate what he might do if cornered.

  Having Ryder as part of the team was a mixed blessing. She knew he was strong enough to protect her friends, but she worried about him getting hurt—or worse.

  With a tug on his shirt front, she said, “You’ve got to obey orders and not take any risks. I don’t want to lose you.”

  The first hint of a smile curved one side of his mouth and spread, erasing his earlier gloom.

  “I promise. I’m not ready to leave you, darlin’. So how about heading home?”

  With a weary smile, she slipped her hand into his and let him lead her from the war room.

  “Home it is.”

  Chapter Thirty

  Maggie hesitated as David rolled to a stop by the bumper of his van in the parking garage. She wanted to be with him tonight in the event that things didn’t go quite as planned tomorrow. But she knew that wasn’t fair because she couldn’t promise him anything but tonight.

  His fingers white-knuckled the wheels of his chair and jerked them back and forth a time or two, then abruptly let go. Thank God, he was as nervous as she was.

  “I don’t know how to say this,” she began.

  “I do. I’d like to come home with you, Maggie.”

  Her heart soared, but she wrestled it back to Earth, not wanting to assume he meant more than the obvious.

  “I’m not sure where this can go,” she said. For about the hundredth time.

  “I understand. I’ve been there, remember?” he said, and in a surge, pushed up from the chair.

  She greeted him halfway, meeting his lips in a kiss whose roughness was tempered by the smiles that followed.

  When he sat again, he said, “I just need to get a change of clothes or two, my shaving kit. I’d rather not waste time coming home in the morning.”

  She bent to brush another kiss across his lips. “I’ll be waiting.”

  …

  It took him less than an hour to go to his apartment, gather together some clothes and the toiletries.

  He paused, smiling, at the thought of what he was doing, of what he and Maggie would soon be doing. His smile faded with uncertainty. He sensed her fear, and understood it all too well.

  That same fear was what had driven him from her months earlier. He hoped in time they could find a way to deal with their complicated new reality—both his and hers.

  Maybe there could even be something permanent for them. Call him old-fashioned, but he believed in marriage and all that it promised.

  With a renewed grin that refused to leave his face, he left his apartment and headed for his van, but as he positioned himself in the driver’s seat, his cell phone rang.

  It was Diana.

  His gut tightened, knowing his partner would not be calling at this hour unless something was wrong.

  “Harris,” he answered.

  “Weasel lied, David. The meet’s going on right now in the tunnel off the City Hall Loop.”

  He froze. “How do you know?”

  “Rafe and Brendon picked up Jefferson’s scent when they were leaving our offices and decided to check it out. They guesstimate about half a dozen shifters are down there beneath City Hall Park, including Jefferson, according to the scent trail.”

  “Where do you need me?” he asked, turning on the speakerphone and starting his van for the drive back downtown.

  “Meet us back at Federal Plaza to get suited up and grab guns and ammo. Ryder and I are already on our way.”

  “I’ll be there in fifteen,” he confirmed.

  Half a dozen or so half-bloods. Not too bad.

  With the duo of wolf shifters, Jesus, Maggie, and Ryder, that made it about even odds. David hoped the team could cull Jefferson from the group and take him down alone, without fighting the other shifters.

  He worried for his friends, and hated that he couldn’t be more help. He knew Diana had the same concerns, but she had backed off from being part of the raid on his account—so she wouldn’t make him feel inadequate being stuck in the surveillance van. He appreciated her new sensitivity. The Diana of old might not have been so aware or so caring.

  But this was a new Diana, he realized. Stronger emotionally. Outwardly more confident, while at the same time more fragile beneath the surface. He was looking forward to exploring the changes in his old partner, as well as those in Maggie.

  Maggie. A werewolf. Talk about a curve ball. He definitely hadn’t seen that one coming. Life had a way of throwing the biggest challenges at the least-expected moments. But he was up to facing them. Now, anyway. With Maggie’s help.

  All that mattered was to get her back in his life, no matter what it took.

  As for tonight, he would keep her safe and alive. Himself, too.

  They’d come through too much to lose each other now.

  …

  The team prepped for the raid in the armory, slipping on bulletproof vests and the windbreakers with the FBI logo emblazoned on the back. Diana and David passed out new earwigs for communication, and once those were tested, everyone exchanged their regular bullets for silver hollow points to ensure maximum takedown power.

  After a quick white-board review of the team’s entry strategy, they all hurried to the surveillance van. Dia
na got behind the wheel and they made the short drive to an overgrown area close to the second skylight access point, as planned.

  Parking the van, she climbed into the back where the others were preparing to head out.

  “As soon as David has eyes inside the tunnels, we’ll finalize our plans,” the ADIC was saying. “For now, get into position and let us know when you’re in place.”

  The other three jumped from the back of the van and disappeared into the night, but Maggie and Ryder hung back for a moment.

  Diana went to her husband, grasped his face between her hands, and said, “Please. Don’t do anything stupid.”

  He grinned, displaying his boyish dimple. “I guess that’s your way of saying you love me?”

  “Maybe,” she said, but smiled and kissed him hard, leaving no doubt about it.

  As she reluctantly broke away, she caught the tail end of Maggie and David’s kiss, but before she could say anything, Ryder and her friend raced away to their assigned positions.

  Diana and David closed up the back of the van, and he settled in front of the bank of monitors and their control panel. He scooped up the fiber-optic cameras they’d be using and handed them to her. The cement of the tunnels was too thick to detect heat signatures, but the small, infrared cameras would easily fit through the gratings and provide visuals—if they could locate a break in the skylight to slip them through. She slid from the van and crouch-ran to one of the gratings. Slipping the devices through a hole in the crisscrossed metal, she followed David’s instructions over the com as he watched the monitor and directed her threading the cameras downward.

  “Just a little more. That’s it. We’re through the skylight and have views of both ends of the tunnel. Infrared is registering several heat signatures in the center of the passageway, but they’re huddled close together.”

  Diana secured the camera in place and hurried back to the van. Glancing past David to the monitors, she tried to get a sense of how many shifters were in the tunnel. “I see at least five, close to the loop track.”